I noticed recently that pretty much the only adverts I ever see on television these days are those awful betting ones in between the football matches that my husband forces me to watch. (Ray Winstone constantly telling me the 'bet in-play odds' is starting to get really annoying, and don't get me started on that Italian guy from the Ladbrokes adverts!).

I don't watch these adverts out of choice but because football is always watched live (in our house anyway) it means we can't fast-forward through the ads like we usually do. Like 50% of UK households we own a digital video recorder and it means that we hardly ever watch live TV anymore. We have even been known to purposely put something on pause for 15 minutes at the start of a programme just so we can skip the ad breaks.

According to Thinkbox, the marketing body for TV advertising, a record more than 10 per cent of TV programmes were viewed on a "time-shifted" basis last year, taking into account both on-demand viewing (BBC iPlayer, 4oD, etc) and digital recordings. The rise in services like LoveFilm and Netflix also mean that fewer people are watching live television.

So, what does this mean for advertisers? As recorded content continues to rise people will increasingly skip through television adverts. One result of this is that we will start to see adverts appear in our on-demand services - but will we be able to skip these as well? Who knows?

Another possible outcome is that companies will start to rely more heavily on other methods of reaching their target audience. For example, online banner advertising, display or good old-fashioned print. I also think this creates an opportunity for companies to integrate alternative marketing strategies such as PR, sponsorship deals, social media or direct mailer campaigns, as they look for more creative, innovative ways to influence their audience.

One thing's for certain, this is definitely not a trend companies can ignore.

@CarolannG_85